19: Chapter 19 Another Encounter with Spirit Fruit

In the blink of an eye, two days passed.

Desolate Ridge.

Morning mist permeated the air, and the greyish light filtered through the fog, coating the entire withered forest in a layer of dull silver-white.

Wu Li crouched on the top of the tallest withered tree, his neck tucked in, his feathers covered in morning dew.

Two days had passed.

The Vulture Demon had not come.

He hadn't sent anyone, not even a scout.

Desolate Ridge was as quiet as a graveyard; only the occasional caw of a crow broke the silence.

Wu Li tilted his head, his bean-sized black pupils gazing toward the depths of the Wanhui Mountain Range.

There, greyish miasma shrouded the layered mountain ranges like a sleeping giant beast; he could feel the oppressive aura coming from that direction—lifeless and deathly—thicker than it had been a few days ago.

That old demon was likely already at its final moment.

As one of the Three Great Demon Generals, the Vulture Demon must be guarding the old demon's side at this moment, not leaving for even a step.

"He should have no time to bother with me now."

"Where should I go to get some good things now?"

Wu Li whispered to himself.

In the current situation, with all the Three Great Demon Generals at the core area, that meant he could explore anywhere in the entire Wanhui Mountain, as long as it wasn't the core area.

Wu Li raised his head and scanned his surroundings.

To the east, the Ape Cave—he had already been there; the White Ape Demon was dead, he had taken the fleeceflower root, and he had also taken the Spirit Stone and Formation Plate, so there was nothing good left.

To the west was the Thousand Fox Den; the Old Fox Demon was dead, and he had taken everything he could; the remaining scraps were not worth another trip.

To the south...

Wu Li's eyes narrowed.

To the south!!

That was the Vulture Demon's lair, and the Vulture Demon was certainly not there now.

Thinking of this.

The corners of Wu Li's mouth lifted slightly, and a glimmer of excitement flashed in his eyes.

"Caw, caw, caw~~"

Wu Li let out a low, raspy laugh, spread his wings, and leaped from the withered branch.

His black figure pierced through the morning mist and flew south.

Wu Li flew for a short while before the terrain ahead began to change.

The desolate and ruined scenery of Desolate Ridge gradually disappeared, replaced by a stretch of bare, precipitous cliffs.

The cliff towered into the clouds, the rock face a grey-brown, devoid of any grass, as if it had been sliced flat by something.

Looking from afar, there was a naturally formed platform in the middle of the cliff, and above the platform was a huge fissure, like the open mouth of a beast, pitch-black and bottomless.

The rocks on both sides of the fissure were worn smooth and shiny, covered in claw marks and dried bloodstains; these were traces left by Yao Beasts coming and going over a long period.

The Vulture Demon's lair had arrived.

Wu Li folded his wings and landed on a dead pine tree, his bean-sized black pupils carefully observing the front.

On the cliff platform, a few vultures were squatting there.

Their size was a circle smaller than Tu San, and most were just Essence Spirits in the Qi Ling Realm, with grey-brown feathers and bald heads and necks; their small eyes were half-open and half-closed, as if they were dozing off, or perhaps keeping watch.

Wu Li counted them; there were five in total.

They were all the Vulture Demon's disciples and descendants, left behind to guard the lair.

Although their strength was not great, the five of them combined were a force that could not be underestimated.

More importantly, they occupied the high ground with a wide field of vision; once they discovered anything unusual, they could immediately sound an alarm.

Wu Li was not in a hurry to approach; he crouched on the withered pine, tilted his head, moved his gaze away from the cliff platform, and scanned the surroundings.

The Vulture Demon's choice of this location for its lair certainly had its reasons; the cliff was a sheer precipice on three sides, with only a narrow mountain ridge leading up, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack.

There were many fissures and caves on the rock wall below the platform, which should be the places where the Vulture Demon and its disciples and descendants lived.

Wu Li's gaze continued to move, and suddenly, his pupils contracted slightly.

On the north side.

On the north side of the cliff platform, a wisp of Spiritual Qi was faintly permeating out.

That Spiritual Qi was very faint, so faint it was almost imperceptible, but Wu Li was a crow, one of the Yao Race species with the strongest eyesight and perception; even a tiny bit of Spiritual Qi fluctuation could not escape his eyes.

"There is something."

A glimmer of excitement flashed in Wu Li's eyes.

That wisp of Spiritual Qi did not look like it was emitted by an ordinary Spirit Medicine; regardless of what it was, since it could be hidden by the Vulture Demon in such a place, it was certainly no ordinary item.

Wu Li withdrew his gaze and looked at the five vultures on the platform again.

They were still dozing off, completely unaware that a pair of eyes in the distance was staring at them.

"Five First-Stage Early Stage..."

Wu Li whispered to himself, and then he began to predict in his mind; with his own strength, after a bout of fighting, he would certainly win in the end.

But...

Wu Li did not want to waste any more Demon Power on such matters; after thinking for a moment, Wu Li leaped directly from the withered pine and flew toward the cliff platform.

His black figure drew an arc under the greyish sky.

On the platform, the five vultures raised their heads in unison.

A trace of confusion first flashed in their small eyes, which then turned into vigilance and hostility.

A slightly larger vulture spread its wings and blocked the front, its raspy voice full of caution: "Stop! This is the territory of Great King Jiu Tian. Who are you?"

Wu Li landed on the edge of the platform, folded his wings, and said in a hurried and sharp voice: "Quick! Great King Jiu Tian has issued an order; an exotic treasure has appeared in the east, and Tu San has already gone over. You are to follow along as well, keep flying east, and if you encounter anything unusual, attack immediately!"

The five vultures were stunned in unison.

"Brother Tu San has already gone?"

The leading vulture asked.

"Nonsense!"

Wu Li's voice became even more hurried: "Great King Jiu Tian gave the order personally; what are you still dawdling for? If you go late, the exotic treasure will be snatched by others!"

The five vultures looked at each other, and then the leading vulture was the first to spread its wings and leap from the platform, with the other four following closely behind.

"Quick!"

The five vultures did not hesitate at all and flew east together.

Seeing this scene.

Wu Li turned around, and his gaze landed on the direction where the wisp of Spiritual Qi was permeating on the north side.

He spread his wings and glided toward the north side along the cliff platform.

On the north side of the platform was a narrow rock fissure, with towering stone walls on both sides; deep inside the fissure, a faint spiritual light was flickering.

Wu Li's figure was not big to begin with, so he flew in easily.

The rock fissure became wider the further in he went; after walking about a dozen steps, his view suddenly opened up. This was a small cave hidden in the belly of the mountain, less than a zhang square, but the Spiritual Qi was so dense it was almost dripping water.

In the center of the cave.

A low Spirit Tree was growing quietly.

The Spirit Tree was about half a person's height, its trunk dark brown, the surface covered with fine cracks, like old tree bark.

The branches and leaves were emerald green and dripping with vitality, emitting a faint fluorescent light in the dim cave.

Seven fruits hung on the branches, varying in size, with colors ranging from greenish-blue to pale red.

Two that were already ripe were completely emerald green, crystal clear, looking like two green gemstones hanging on the branches, emitting a rich Spiritual Qi. The remaining five were still greenish-blue, clearly not yet ripe.

Wu Li's eyes lit up.

This was not a Vermilion Fruit, but a type of Spirit Fruit he had never seen before.

Its quality was even better than a Vermilion Fruit; even the unripe green fruits emitted much denser Spiritual Qi than a fifty-year Vermilion Fruit.